Analysts are getting bolder in their predictions for the Apple “iPhone”, this time telling their clients to be “aggressive” in purchasing Apple shares before the phone is released. American Technology Research Analyst Shaw Wu says the phone has already gone from concept to prototype, and should be ready for manufacturing soon as a production unit.

“Clearly, we would like to share more detail as we have conducted extensive work on the product pipeline, but for now, here is what we will convey,” Wu wrote. “The design will be an iPod nano-like candy bar form factor and come in three colors (we are not certain of the exact colors but we suspect black, white and platinum, similar to Apple’s current color scheme of iPods and Macs).”

The method of delivery is what’s reportedly holding back the cellphone from being deployed. Whether Apple is going to partner with say, Cingular or Verizon, or whether they’re going to go MVNO-style is still being discussed internally. – Jason Chen